2025 Korea Lender Survey

As of 2024, the combined loan balance for Korea’s construction and real estate sectors totaled approximately KRW 361 trillion. This figure has repeatedly hit record highs in recent years and has more than doubled over the past decade, indicating a pronounced acceleration in growth.

This expansion has been driven by a convergence of several factors including a prolonged low-interest-rate environment; the growth of the domestic commercial real estate market; rising asset prices; increased market participation by corporates; and the escalation of construction costs associated with large-scale development projects. However, this long-term growth in the domestic real estate finance market has seen the concurrent emergence of a need for macro-level risk management.

Further interest rate cuts are widely anticipated before the end of 2025 and continuing into 2026. While rate reductions are expected to stimulate additional loan demand within Korea’s commercial real estate sector, a prolonged period of subdued economic growth could elevate the risk of loan deterioration and defaults.

Against this backdrop, CBRE has undertaken Korea’s first lender-focused real estate survey to gain a comprehensive understanding of the market. Featuring participation from 44 major domestic lenders, the survey explores topics including future lending attitudes; preferred asset classes; shifts in underwriting standards; and broader expectations for the lending landscape. Through these insights, CBRE provides a forward-looking perspective on the future of Korea’s real estate finance market.